Cabinet



y 3 YR. w. ROSENDALE 2,167,525

CABINET Filed Aug. s, 1935 INVENTOR R. n. ROSENDALE emmwl Patented July 25, 1939 UNITED STATES CABINET Robert W. Rosendale, Westlield, N. J., assignor to Western Electric Company, Incorporated, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application August 8, 1935, Serial No. 35,222

2 Claims.

This invention relates to cabinets and more particularly to cabinets for containing, supporting and protecting assemblages of relatively delicate electrical units and appliances such as are used in the communications arts, especially in telephony and in radio.

Devices for use in radio and in telephony are frequently complex assemblies comprising vacuum tubes and other easily damaged devices; and each such assembly is ordinarily designed and constructed to meet the needs of some particular application. Hence such assemblies differ among themselves as to the volume and proportions of the space required to house them.

An object of the present invention is to provide cabinets for housing such assemblies, which have a uniform and pleasing character of external appearance, and which may be rapidly and simply constructed from a minimum variety of prefabricated parts with a minimum of cutting of parts required.

One embodiment of the invention may be in a cabinet comprising flat sheet metal end and side panels, edge units of sheet metal preformed to have a generally angular cross section and cut to the desired lengths, and trihedral corner members or gussets preformed from sheet metal, the corner members being welded or otherwise secured to the edge units and the panels being welded or otherwise attached to the edge units also, preferably in suitable preformed recesses therein.

Other objects and characteristic features of the invention will appear from the following detailed description of one embodiment thereof taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which the same reference numerals are applied to identical parts in the several figures and in which:

' Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a cabinet constructed in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged broken perspective view of a corner of the assembled frame of the cabinet showing also an alternative form of panel;

Fig. 3 is a similar view thereof from behind, and

Fig. 4 is a plan view of an unformed corner member blank.

In the embodiment of the invention herein disclosed the cabinet is generally rectangularly parallelopipedal in shape and comprises four vertical edge members 20; four upper horizontal edge members 2!, four lower horizontal edge members 22, two upper and lower end panels 23 and 24; three side panels 25, a door 26, and eight trihedral corner members 21.

The panels 23, 24 and 25 are simply flat rectangular pieces of sheet metal. The edge members are cut to whatever respective lengths are required for the individual cabinet in question from preformed indeterminate lengths of material. This material may be easily and simply preformed by rolling from strips of flat sheet metal to present two elongated flanges or sides 28 (Fig. 3) integrally united in a generally right angled cross section at an edge 30. Each of the sides 28 is further formed with a depressed portion along its outer edge making therein a continuous recess 30 preferably so dimensioned that the outer surface of a panel laid therein will be flush with the outer face of the undepressed portion of the flange 28.

As herein disclosed the vertical edge members 20 run the full length of the cabinet from top to bottom, while the horizontal edge members 2| and 22 are cut irregularly to run between vertical members 20 from side to side; but the choice as to which edge members are to include others at right angles thereto between them is entirely a matter of taste to be governed by the desired external appearance of the finished cabinet, the mechanics of construction and assembly being the same in any case.

To make a corner member 21 in accordance with the invention, a rectangular blank of flat sheet metal may be taken such as is indicated in Fig. 4 where the full line outline of the cut blank is supplemented with dotted lines 3| to show the original rectangular blank. Right angled notches 32, 33 and 34 are cut in three sides of the blank as shown, and being right angled may be cut in a press with three strokes of a single cutting tool. The blank is then folded along the dotted lines 35 into the trihedral corner member 21, best shown in Fig. 2. The notch 34 is the only one of the three notches mechanically necessary. In the embodiment disclosed, the notches 32 and 33 are also made however, partly for lightness, and partly to leave as much clear space between opposite side panels and opposite edge units as possible in the completed cabinet. There might well also be a similar notch cut in the edge 36 of the blank for analogous reasons. However, in the cabinet as disclosed the corresponding side of the trihedral member is left undiminished and is perforated at 31 for the passage of a bolt or the like (not shown) in mounting apparatus in the cabinet.

The panels 23, 24 and 25 are shown as seated with their edge portions in the recesses 30 of the edge units 20, 2| and 22 and having the outer faces of the panels flush with the outer faces of the edge units. This arrangement produces a cabinet of pleasing appearance. The recesses 30 and panels may however be so proportioned in depth and thickness respectively that the outer surface of the panel shall lie either above or below the outer faces of the corresponding edge units.

An alternative construction of the panels is disclosed in Fig. 3, where the edge of the panel is folded inwardly and upwardly to form an integral flange 38 which may be used to secure the panel to the edge unit, whereby the securing means may be concealed from the outside if desired. In the simpler form shown in Fig. 1, the panel 25 for example may be secured to the adjacent edge units 20, 2|, 20 and 22 by any suitable means. If the cabinet is to be permanently assembled, these parts may preferably be spot welded or riveted together as at points 39. Or if the cabinet is to be separable into parts, as for compactness in shipping, bolts or screws may be used as at the points passing through preformed holes 4|.

The door 26 may be swingingly attached to an edge unit by any appropriate means not shown.

It may in some instances be desirable for increased strength and rigidity to secure together the edges of the notch 34 after the blank of Fig. 4 has been folded. It is preferable in some such instances to fit and weld the corner member into place in the frame of the cabinet before the edges of the notch are welded and hence before the member itself is rendered completely unyielding,

while in gother cases it may be preferable to weld the edges of the notch before the member is finally secured to the edge units.

By this mode of construction indefinite lengths of edge unit material preformed to have the cross section best shown at the top .of Fig. 3 may be manufactured and held in stock. 'So also a supply of trihedral corner members 21 may be prefabricated. The manufacture of a cabinet of any required volume and proportions is thus rendered rapid and simple.

The embodiment herein disclosed is illustrative only and may be modified and departed from in many ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as pointed out in and limited only by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a cabinet, three edge members each comprising an angle member having the two sides thereof ofi'set inwardly longitudinally thereof, and a corner member of trihedral form, each edge member being fitted over and secured to the corner member along the ofiset portions of the edge member and along an edge of the trihedral member.

2. In a cabinet, three edge members each comprising an angle member of sheet metal having the two sides thereof offset inwardly longitudinally thereof, and a corner member of sheet metal in trihedral form, each edge member being fitted L over and secured to the corner member along the offset portions of the edge member and along an edge of the trihedral member.

ROBERT W. ROSENDALE. 

